Aquaculture and Fish

Aquaculture and Fish

Hill Labs is a RLP accredited laboratory with a wide range of tests to support the fishing and aquaculture industries. Fish, Shellfish (such as mussels, oysters, clams) and even seaweed are tested for compliance against domestic and/or export requirements. Commonly conducted analyses include chemistry testing for Maximum Residue Levels (MRL’s) particularly heavy metals, and Microbiological testing to ensure food safety.

Heavy Metal Testing

Water may become contaminated with heavy metals for many reasons. Many soil contaminants, such as heavy metals remain in biologically accessible states for extended periods of time, and are water-soluble, which means that they can bio-accumulate in fish and shellfish and potentially humans. As such testing soil, water, fruits and vegetables for heavy metals is commonplace. Hill Labs has an extensive suite of heavy metal tests for use on everything from soil through to honey. Our technical notes will help guide you through what test may be right for your needs.

Pathogen Testing

Hill Labs has an extensive array of pathogen-related tests that use either traditional culture, or molecular based detection. Our turnaround times are industry-leading and can be used with product or environmental swabs alike. Some of our routinely analysed pathogens are listed below:

  • Listeria species (by PCR)
  • Listeria monocytogenes (by PCR)
  • Salmonella (by PCR)
  • Aerobic plate count (APCs)
  • Enterobacteriaceae
  • Total coliforms
  • Faecal coliforms
  • E. coli
  • STEC E. coli ((including O157) by PCR)
  • Clostridium perfringens
  • Staphylococcus aureus
  • Camplyobacter

Pesticide Residue Testing

Hill Labs has extensive experience in the analysis of pesticide residues. We have developed award winning purification systems that ensure the best possible extraction of contaminants across the most diverse array of sample types available in New Zealand. Our test offering is IANZ accredited and suitable for use in both domestic and export-based situations. 

Contact us for more info

Helpful links

Our team of testing experts has meticulously crafted these documents to offer recommendations tailored to your testing requirements.

Latest Stories

Acquisition of Terra Scientific's assets

Hill Labs has been committed to the contaminated land and asbestos sectors for many years. As part of our ongoing growth, we are excited to announce that as of the 3rd May 2024, we will acquire some of the assets of Terra Scientific Ltd (TSL), including their asbestos business and ICP-MS instrument. This acquisition will allow us to grow our existing asbestos business, and the addition of an extra ICP-MS will create additional capacity for us in the metals testing space.
  06 May 2024

Honey Testing - our industry-leading turnaround times

Ensuring consistent turnaround times is paramount as we prepare for the upcoming honey season. By maintaining efficiency and reliability in our operations, we not only meet the demands of our clients, but also uphold our reputation for excellence in service delivery.
  19 Feb 2024

Ag Plant Test Changes Coming

The start of a new year is when most businesses look at what they do, and make changes where it is sensible to do so. For our Ag section, there are a couple of small changes to advise on, following this review.
  15 Feb 2024

What our customers have to say

"We've always found them to be responsive in getting results back and giving advice on problems we might be facing."

Andrew Hutchinson, Technical Manager, Turners & Growers

"We strongly recommend Hill Labs as a sound testing service provider to the honey industry."

Nick Walker, Technical Manager, Egmont Honey

"Their sample registration system has made things simple and seamless - collect, scan and send!"

Mathew Bannister, Compliance Manager, First Fresh New Zealand

Accreditations

As a New Zealand accredited laboratory by International Accreditation New Zealand (IANZ), Hill Labs' commitment to quality is tantamount to our overall operating philosophy. We pride ourselves on the quality of our work.